Concealed Firearm Curio Cabinet

ABSTRACT

A curio cabinet apparatus comprised of: a central portion having a top surface, a first side surface, a second side surface, a bottom surface, and a front surface; at least one optically concealed forming an optically concealed firearm storage compartment.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application claims the benefit and priority to U.S. provisionalapplication Ser. No. 60/903,743 filed on Feb. 27, 2007.

FIELD OF INVENTION

This invention relates generally to the field of gun storage units, andmore specifically to a highly stylized curio cabinet designed to conformto household environments in order to optically conceal itsfunctionality as a weapons storage cabinet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a top perspective view of one embodiment of a concealedfirearm curio cabinet with the doors closed.

FIG. 2 shows a top perspective view of one embodiment of a concealedfirearm curio cabinet shown in FIG. 1, but with the door open.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional top view of the embodiment of a concealedfirearm curio cabinet shown in FIG. 1 taken along line 3-3.

FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional top view of the embodiment of theconcealed firearm curio cabinet shown in FIG. 1 taken along line 3-3,but with the doors open.

FIG. 5 shows a top perspective view of an alternate embodiment of theconcealed firearm curio cabinet.

BACKGROUND

It is estimated that guns are kept in 25% of American homes. Many gunowners have children, or live in homes that are visited by children. Thehazards posed by guns that are visible and accessible to children arewell-documented and tragic. The U.S. Center for Disease Control hasestimated that nearly 3,000 children are killed by gun-related accidentseach year. Additionally, stolen guns pose enormous risks to society.There are nearly 300,000 reports of stolen guns each year, and a highpercentage of homicides are committed with stolen guns.

Secure gun cabinets help to mitigate the hazards of guns kept inresidential settings. However, many gun owners are resistant topurchasing and using them. Secure gun cabinets reduce space available inthe home for other furniture, and often are not multifunctional as anitem of furniture and do not serve other purposes in the household, suchas the storage and display of household objects.

Additionally, the presence of a visible secure cabinet in a homegenerally indicates that some sort of items are stored within it, and isan obvious target for thieves, intruders or mischievous children lookingfor guns (or other valuable objects) kept within a home.

Currently, there are a number of commercially available gun cabinets andstorage cabinets designed for residential settings. However, these gunstorage cabinets are available in limited style options and are notfunctionally designed to detract from their appearance as storagecabinets. Also, although some commercially available gun storagecabinets are designed to complement or blend into residentialenvironments, they are not designed to allow consumers to personalizetheir appearance to adapt the cabinets to their home surroundings andlifestyles. Additionally, currently available gun storage cabinets donot take advantage of a full range of optical effects to detractattention from the storage unit as a potential repository of guns andweaponry.

GLOSSARY

As used herein, “firearm” refers to any small arms weapon capable offiring a projectile and using an explosive charge as a propellant,including but not limited to pistols, rifles, and shotguns.

As used herein, “curio cabinet” refers to any type of cabinet or item offurniture normally found in a domestic setting, and which is used tostore, display or rest objects such as collectibles, dishes,photographs, heirlooms, china, books, pottery or other objects which arenormally found in a household and unrelated to firearms or weaponry. Anitem of furniture may be categorized as a curio cabinet, regardless ofwhether it serves any other function (e.g., a hutch, a table, abookshelf, etc.).

As used herein, “optically concealed” means any object, compartment orcomponent designed or configured to be visually unobtrusive or lessnoticeable. For example, an object may be angled or constructed in amanner so that its actual width or depth appears minimized or opticallyconcealed. Object may be optically concealed so that the angles ofplanes and surfaces minimize the outer visibility of interior storageareas. Other means of creating an optically concealed interiorcompartment include but are not limited to positioning conspicuousobjects in a manner so as to draw attention from the object or componentto be optically concealed, minimizing the gap between components such asdoors which permit access to the interior concealed area and positioningsurfaces to use reflective light to detract from visibility.

As used herein, “reflective surface” means any surface which reflects orabsorbs light in a manner to facilitate the design of an opticallyconcealed feature, including polished, mirrored, contoured, textured andother light refracting or absorbing surfaces.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is desirable to make a multi-functional item of furniture, such as acurio cabinet, available to consumers which allows them to personalizethe appearance of the cabinet by allowing them to store objectsreflecting their personal tastes and lifestyles such as art,collectibles, dishes, pottery, jewelry, knick-knacks, candles,glassware, silverware and any other object which may be found in ahousehold but which is not associated with guns or weaponry.

The concealed firearm curio cabinet described herein includes a centralportion having a top surface, a first side surface, a second sidesurface, a bottom surface and a front surface, and at least oneoptically concealed hinge or bracket to create an optically concealeddoor forming an optically concealed firearm storage compartment. Some,but not all embodiments, include at least one angled surface tooptically conceal the width of said optically concealed firearm storagecompartment, and optically concealed lock. Other embodiments include aglass panel to form a viewing surface to visually display objectsunrelated to firearms thus visually detracting from the opticallyconcealed compartment. Other embodiments may include a fully orpartially lit interior compartment for displaying objects to visuallydetract from said optically concealed firearm storage compartment, andmay be constructed so that the seam between any door or panel isminimized or positioned to optically conceal the visibility of the door,drawer or other internal gun storage compartment. Other embodiments mayinclude at least one reflective surface to reflect light and visuallydetract from said optically concealed firearm storage compartment.

Detailed Description of Embodiments of the Invention

For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the present invention,references are made in the text hereof to embodiments of a piece offurniture with a concealed firearm storage compartment, only some ofwhich are depicted in the figures. It should nevertheless be understoodthat no limitations on the scope of the invention are thereby intended.One of ordinary skill in the-art will readily appreciate thatmodifications such as the dimensions, size, and shape of the components,materials from which the furniture is made, and the inclusion ofadditional elements are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one ofordinary skill in the art, and that all equivalent relationships tothose illustrated in the drawings and described in the writtendescription do not depart from the spirit and scope of the presentinvention. Some of these possible modifications are mentioned in thefollowing description. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein arenot to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claimsand as a representative basis for teaching one of ordinary skill in theart to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriatelydetailed piece of furniture with a concealed firearm storage compartmentor manner.

It should be understood that the drawings are not necessarily to scale,emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of theinvention. In addition, in the embodiments depicted herein, the readershould understand that like reference numerals in the various drawingsrefer to the like elements, components, and structural elements of theinvention.

Moreover, the term “substantially” or “approximately” as used herein maybe applied to modify any quantitative representation that couldpermissibly vary without resulting in a change in the basic function towhich it is related. For example, one embodiment of a piece of furniturewith a concealed firearm storage compartment is disclosed herein asbeing rectangular. The furniture might permissibly be somewhatnon-rectangular and still be within the scope of the invention if itsfunctionality is not materially altered.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows a top perspective view ofone embodiment of a piece of curio cabinet 100 which includes concealedfirearm storage compartment 200 (not visible with the doors closed).Furniture 100 is comprised of central portion 110 and two (2) doors 120,121. Central portion 110 is comprised of top surface 130, front surface140, side surfaces (not visible; discussed in greater detail infra),base 170, and back surface (also not visible; discussed in greaterdetail infra). In the embodiment shown, each door 120, 121 is connectedto the side surfaces by one (1) or more optically concealed hinges (alsonot visible; discussed in greater detail infra).

In the embodiment shown, curio cabinet 100 is readily recognizable as acurio cabinet, in which front surface 140 and the back surface arecovered by glass, allowing shelves 190 (illuminated by one or morelights, not visible) within curio cabinet 100 and any objects placedthereon to be viewed. However, it should be understood that almost anyother piece of furniture, e.g., an entertainment center, china cabinet,credenza, dresser, computer cabinet, or filing cabinet, with or withoutlighting, can be used, and any number of shelves 190 can bemused.Furthermore, alternate embodiments of furniture 100 need not includeshelves 190 entirely.

FIG. 2 shows a top perspective view of the embodiment of curio cabinet100 shown in FIG. 1, but with door 120 open. In this figure, sidesurfaces 160, 161 and hinges 150 are visible. Side surface 160 ofcentral portion 110 and door 120 form optically concealed firearmstorage compartment 200. A similar compartment may be formed on theother side of furniture 100, but is not visible from this perspective.Because of the shape of door 120, i.e., rounded front corners 122, thepresence of concealed firearm storage compartment 200 is not readilyapparent when furniture 100 is viewed. The shape of door 120 and therounded or angled corners 120 are angled or placed to visually minimize(i.e., optically conceal) the outer surfaces of curio cabinet 100 whichsurround concealed firearm storage compartment 200.

In the embodiment shown, gun rack 210 and firearm shelving 211 supportfirearm 220 within concealed firearm storage compartment 200. Ammunitionshelving 212 is also visible within concealed firearm storagecompartment 200. It should be understood, however, that any number offirearm shelving 210, 211 can be within compartment, and any number ofammunition shelving 212, including none, can be included in curiocabinet 100. Moreover, in other embodiments, firearm storage compartmentmay be an optically concealed drawer. Moreover, while firearm shelving210, 211 and firearm shelving 212 are shown to be positioned on sidesurface 160, firearm shelving 210, 211 and firearm shelving 212 couldalternately be positioned on inner surface 125 of door 120. It shouldalso be understood that doors 120 and 121 may be a plurality of panels,sliding panels or other cabinet or door configurations. Referring toFIG. 1 and FIG. 2 collectively, doors 120, 121 are shaped with roundedfront corners 122 (the rounded corner of door 121 is not visible) toconceal compartment 200 by giving curio cabinet 100 the appearance thatshelves 190 extend to the outward limits of curio cabinet 100. Inaddition, top surface 130 extends beyond side surfaces 160, 161 to helpoptically conceal the seam between doors 120, 121 and side surfaces 160,161, respectively.

Also visible in FIGS. 1 and 2 are locking members 180, 181. Lockingmembers 180, 181 lock doors 120, 121 in a closed position. In theembodiment shown, locking members 180, 181 are key locks, but canalternately be any type of lock commonly known in the art. It should beunderstood, too, that each and every embodiment of curio cabinet 100need not include locking members 180, 181, and that a single lockingmember could be used to lock both doors 120, 121. In the embodimentshown, locking members are optically concealed.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional top view of the embodiment of curiocabinet 100 with a concealed firearm storage compartment 200 shown inFIG. 1 taken along line 3-3.

FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional top view of the embodiment of the curiocabinet with a concealed firearm storage compartment shown in FIG. 1taken along line 4-4, but with the doors open.

FIG. 5 shows a top perspective view of an alternate embodiment of thecurio cabinet with a concealed firearm storage compartment. Also visibleare leg supports 175, which elevate central portion 110 off of theground.

While curio cabinet 100 with concealed firearm storage compartment 200has been shown and described with respect to several embodiments inaccordance with the present invention, it is to be understood that thesame is not limited thereto, but is susceptible to numerous changes andmodifications as known to a person of ordinary skill in the art, and itis intended that the present invention not be limited to the detailsshown and described herein, but rather cover all such changes andmodifications. obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art.

1. A curio cabinet apparatus comprised of: a central portion having atop surface, a first side surface, a second side surface, a bottomsurface and a front surface; at least one optically concealed hinge; andat least one door forming at least one optically concealed firearmstorage compartment.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, which further includesat least one angled surface to optically conceal the width of said atleast one concealed firearm storage compartment.
 3. The apparatus ofclaim 1, which further includes at least one optically concealed lock.4. The apparatus of claim 1, which further includes at least one glasspanel to visually display objects unrelated to firearms and detract fromsaid at least one optically concealed firearm storage compartment. 5.The apparatus of claim 1, which further includes a partially litinterior compartment for displaying objects to visually detract fromsaid at least one concealed firearm storage compartment.
 6. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein the seam between said door and saidcentral portion is optically concealed to minimize the visibility ofsaid door and said optically concealed firearm storage compartment. 7.The apparatus of claim 1, which further includes at least one reflectivesurface to reflect light and visually detract from said at least oneoptically concealed firearm storage compartment.
 8. The apparatus ofclaim 1, which further includes at least one contoured surface toreflect light and visually detract from said at least one opticallyconcealed firearm storage compartment.
 9. The apparatus of claim 1,which further includes at least one textured surface to reflect lightand visually detract from said at least one optically concealed firearmstorage compartment.
 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said at leastone door is an optically concealed storage drawer.
 11. The apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein said at least one door is w at least one opticallyconcealed sliding door.
 12. The apparatus of claim 1, which furtherincludes at least one optically concealed gun rack within said at leastone optically concealed storage firearm storage compartment.
 13. Theapparatus of claim 1, which further includes at least one firearmshelving within said at least one optically concealed storage firearmstorage compartment.
 14. The apparatus of claim 1, which furtherincludes at least one ammunition shelving within said at least oneoptically concealed storage firearm storage compartment.
 15. A curiocabinet apparatus comprised of: a central portion having a top surface,a first side surface, a second side surface, a bottom surface and afront surface; at least one optically concealed hinge; and at least onedoor forming an optically concealed firearm storage compartment whereinsaid front surface is angled to optically conceal the width of saidconcealed firearm storage compartment.
 16. The apparatus of claim 15,wherein at least one side surface are angled to optically conceal thewidth of said concealed firearm storage compartment.
 17. The apparatusof claim 15, which further includes at least one optically concealedlock.
 18. The apparatus of claim 15, which further includes at least oneglass panel to visually display objects unrelated to firearms tovisually detract from said concealed firearm storage compartment. 19.The apparatus of claim 15, which further includes a partially litinterior compartment for displaying objects to visually detract fromsaid concealed firearm storage compartment.
 20. The apparatus of claim15, wherein the seam between said door and said central portion isoptically concealed to minimize the visibility of said door.